No Handle Bars
by Breathlessly Wicked
Summary: Back in Spokane. He wasn't killed. Now he wants blood. Rose's blood. And he'll do anything to get it. With the approaching tests that will leave Rose defenceless and scared, He has her right where he wants her. And god does He want her.


_Well here it is, enjoy and please keep an open mind. _

_Siy Rowling?_

"Hey you, just calling to check up and see what's going on. I'm sure classes have been hard to bare without me." Static and then it continued, "So I was letting you know, I have contacts. They will tell me every move you make. When you leave the wards you're mine." –Click

"Decided to have a nice little trip to Court did you? Well no worries, I won't make the same mistake twice." –Click

"I can only imagine what you feel like, cowering beneath my hands." A long pause. "What you taste like under my tongue." -Click

"You're so beautiful, I can't wait to see that beauty drain away like the light in your eyes will as I drink from you." –Click

"You're so close I can almost taste you." –Click

"Careful where you step, I have people everywhere." –Click

"I can only watch you from afar now, it hurts. But imagining the moment when you break, when you're all mine, when I win . . . It's worth the wait." –Click

"You. Are. _Mine._" A final growl and then a resounding –Click

"End of new messages, to hear them again press one; to era-" I snapped my phone shut. Staring at the small silver phone in amazement, my only thoughts were, _'I hadn't known that he'd sent so many.' _

They were beginning to build up. I could barley remember the song, "No Handle Bars" by The Flowbots playing once or twice everyday right before I went to sleep and then just as I woke up. That was his ring tone on my phone.

That made me wonder in a half awake way what would happen when it was time. It _was_ almost time. The tests were soon. The one's that would define my career as a Guardian. The one where I would have to go out into the real world and, with a Moroi classmate and an additional _real _Guardian, I would stay for a week. Other teachers would begin to pop up in real life situations playing as the Strogoi. The additional Guardian would only be an observer or in case of real emergencies. All of the senior class would be participating. There was no doubt in my mind that I wouldn't be paired with Lissa. That was too obvious; Alberta wouldn't be that easy on me. In fact I'd be lucky if I wasn't paired with Jesse Zeklos.

Well I was pretty sure Dimitri wouldn't let that happen. But that was the general idea.

It scared me that we would be going outside the wards. It scared me that I was pretty sure I was going to die. But what scared me the most was that he'd known when Lissa and I had visited Court, it meant that he might have someone watching Lissa too, which meant she may be in danger. It had been another hearing and Lissa was trying to get into politics more and more. We had left from inside of the Academy and landed in the Royal Court then back again, not once setting foot outside any wards. Somehow, he had known I was on that plane. Somehow, he knew my every move I made. I was trapped. He had me.

I hadn't told anyone that Mason was contacting me in any way. In fact, everyone though he was dead. But I knew better. I could only imagine the red rimmed irises matching his red hair and how much stronger he was. How much power he had over me. I was the reason he was dead, or undead. I felt as if I kind of deserved the slow painful death he was planning for me.

Not even Dimitri knew; I hoped to god that he would never have to find out either. In fact I hoped no one ever found out, they didn't have to know, because I was going to kill Mason. Looking up at the clock at the end of my bed, I realized it was time for training. Actually, it was well past time for training. Only in a slight rush, I stumbled into my closet and put on some sweats and grabbed my duffel bag that held all the gear I would need as well as a water bottle. Grabbing the hair band from my wrist, I tied my hair up as I fast-walked to the gym.

No matter what façade I put up, that last message had really shaken me. Blinking back fatigue I stopped in front of the door. My head was spinning and my stomach felt like it was eating itself. Sleeping and eating hadn't been high on my priorities list nowadays. Even if it was taking a toll on my body the thought of the red lingering eyes that filled my dreams as I slept and the horrible taste of blood that filled my mouth as I ate was too much to bare anymore. It had only been two days without food, and four without sleep not that big a deal.

Shaking off my head rush, I stepped into the dark gymnasium. Usually Dimitri had everything set up and ready well before I even walked through the door, something was different. I couldn't bring myself to get into fighting stance, but I did manage to take a good 360 of the room before I was attacked.

Almost without thought, I threw the duffel bag from my hand right as my head hit the polished wood floor hard. Gathering all the strength I could, my legs came up to my chest and then out to my attackers stomach. A low grunt as this time his head hit the floor, I was given a split second to reestablish up from down but then knew I had to take advantage of his position. Crouching and jumping on top of him I held his hands with a vice-like death grip in one hand my legs were on either side of him and I used all of my body weight to hold him down, my free hand going to his throat.

He was taking none of that, using my slightly weak grip on his hands to his advantage, he got one of his hands free and while I reached for his throat with a slightly unsure hand, he was able to turn the tables again. I was flipped onto my stomach with both hands painfully behind my back and my waist straddled securely. I wriggled and soon panic was all that was fueling me. It was Mason, he'd found me. A sudden burst of adrenaline allowed me to buck my attacker off and instantly I was running. There was nothing else in my mind, just getting away. Bursting through the door I streaked past the laps court and then the courtyard. I was almost half way across campus when I was tackled again.

Looking up into what I expected to be red eyes, I was thrashing and screaming, and then I saw it. I felt so stupid. My heart raced and I was instantly still. Dimitri was holding me down lightly and his deep brown eyes stared back at me full of confusion. And then realization.

"Maybe it was too soon." He sighed. I blinked back the dizziness again and just barley stayed conscious.

"No." Was my immediate reaction. He thought that I was still having panic attacks from Sopke, that had only lasted a little while but I'd had to quit training for a week or two and that had hurt me this close to the tests. And the fact that when I wasn't training I didn't get to spend any time with Dimitri kind of sealed the deal. There was no way I was telling him it had been kind of a panic attack, I couldn't risk loosing any time with Dimitri it was too precious to me. "No, I was just tired. That's all, I had a nightmare and the whole dark room and suddenly being attacked, kind of matched the dream too well." I stuttered and tried to convince him. There was an awkward silence, he didn't move from on top of me. I didn't make a move to get up. We just kind of stared at one another.

His forehead was almost touching mine and my back pressed hard into the snow of the courtyard. His eyes were swimming with some hidden emotions that I couldn't decipher but I was close to just closing the space between our lips anyway.

A few moments later, he sprung up and held a hand out to help me up. I realized I needed the extra aid the second I tried to get up myself. Clutching his hand firmly, I sighed and felt as my stomach began convulsing. Trying not to double over in pain; I smiled at him in thanks, with that I let go of his hand and started to walk back to the gym. Thing is about breaking two clasping hands is that both people need to let their hands fall away; my hand was as limp as a dead fish and ready to fall back down to my side but Dimitri held our hands together firmly with his huge paw of a hand. I looked down at our palms mashed together as he laced our fingers jointly.

Dimitri usually wasn't one for things like this, saying it was too complicated and he was only my teacher, but for even a brief pause, we had our moment. It was just a peaceful togetherness that swallowed me whole and gave me a mental high. Like I could take on anything, even the Mason thing.

That thought broke me from bliss and I slid my hand out from under Dimitri's and speed walked back to the gym to do laps. No matter how much I loved him, that would hold Mason back and the more connected I was with Dimitri, the harder it was going to be to keep him out of Mason's line of fire. Even if he was a new Strogoi I knew he had connections. Hell half of our older friends and family had either been killed or turned Strogoi no doubt he had connections. And that would hurt everyone around me when he killed me.

There was no reason for me to have any misgivings about my death. If Mason wanted me dead, I would be dead before I could say 'Calliope'. He was just pulling this out, predator having fun with his prey. I had to find a way to keep everyone out of this. The only thing that came to mind was like thrusting a knife through my heart and twisting it. I couldn't stay near them, I was putting everyone in danger. I had to take Mason on alone. As I approached the track field, I began running. For some reason, even after my usual forty or so laps, I kept going. It was calming me down but I was so dizzy, staying in only one line was becoming a problem.

My feet just wouldn't stop. My legs were numb. I could barley tell right from left, but it was impossible to stop. It seemed like it would hurt more to stop than to continue so I just kept going forward and forward until I wasn't moving anymore. I guess I'd fallen but my head was spinning too much to notice, I lay in a crumpled heap and my lungs screamed like the blonde chick that always ends up dieing in horror movies. Sleep. I just needed some sleep. The ground was a nice comfy place. No one would be using the track for a few hours. The moment I snuggled up to the pavement and closed my eyes, his face was there. Red eyes. Fangs. Thin-lipped smiles that receded back to a snarl and then it was tearing into my flesh. I couldn't move.

My eyes shot open just in time to see a pair of boots clomping to my side. Dimitri's face was the only thing I saw as black seeped in from the corners of my vision. I saw more so than felt as strong arms swooped down and helped me to stand, supporting well-more then half of my body weight. My throat was closed up and all I could do was hum. For some reason it helped the burning that my entire body was dealing with.

"Rose, Rose, Rose answer me. Roza?" His calls started out strong but ended more like a call than a command. There was real worry in his face and I was too out of it to tell him I was fine. Letting my head loll onto his chest, I blinked back a red haze that covered my entire vision. I was being dragged to the gym. There he would probably call the clinic because that was the kind of person my mentor was. The kind that was really worried about me and wouldn't risk moving me too far incase I had a concussion or something.

I wanted to call out and tell him that I was fine. I really liked Dimitri, and I hated to see him worried. I just couldn't find the strength to make my lungs work quite yet.

He pulled me all the way from the far side of the track and saw how much discomfort I was in, so he decided that lifting me up into a full carry was best. A too cool feeling crept into my stomach like a spider. It was a warning for something. Just as we entered the gymnasium it happened.

My cell phone began to play "No Handle Bars" by the Flowbots.

_Okay, flame, critique or just give me some well thought-out showers of praise anyway you slice it I'm okay with it. Just as long as I get one review I'll continue :D_

_Siy Rowling?_


End file.
